By mid-2020, the casino and online gambling sector globally grew to $227 billion – showing a clear growth in the industry and that casino games have skyrocketed in popularity within the past few years. With the rise of technology, it’s only natural that the quality of online casinos has grown to accommodate even more players.
There are several different options to choose from when playing at an online casino but the main types of games are broken up into two categories – online slots and table games. The term table games actually represent a variety of games of chance varying from blackjack to roulette. With table games, there are usually one or more live croupiers (aka dealers) to ensure that the game runs smoothly.
On the other side of online casinos, you’ll find online slots which are just as popular as table games. Instead of having a croupier, online slots are controlled by the player as they decide the pace and when to stop. Of course, the actual outcome of an online slot is selected by a random number generator (RNG) so there’s no determining what you could get.
That being said, online slots offer way more to players than table games. From selecting their own pace to a bigger choice selection, online slots provide a bigger range of options for all different types of players.
Catering to individuals
There are only a select amount of table games available online with the most popular being baccarat, blackjack, craps and roulette. They are quite formulaic and follow a certain structure with very few variations, whereas online slots can cater to individuals with different tastes.
With online slots, there is a huge selection with a genre for everyone. There’s a huge assortment of themes that are endless meaning that a player could go from true crime to superheroes with ease.
Furthermore, online slots don’t limit players to select styles as they give players the freedom of choice. Most online casinos feature at least 100 slots to choose from, whereas there is often less selection for table games meaning that sometimes players are forced to select the only ones available.
An assortment of mechanics
The beauty of online slots is that they can be radically different in terms of mechanics. Naturally, the most common online slot features a reel mechanic in which you spin and hope to land a winning payline. Despite this, a huge majority of slot developers have tried to switch things up by creating new and exciting mechanics.
Megaways is perhaps the most popular and renowned with the traditional payline system being changed to 117,649 paylines for even more thrills. Many traditional slots have been completely revolutionised through the Megaways mechanic and it’s breathed new life into slots.
From the development of Megaways, there have been more mechanics such as Cluster Pays, Infinity Reels, Slingo and Megaclusters which have all redefined what online slots actually are. Cluster Pays instead matches up symbols instead of a payline, whilst Slingo has actually combined bingo and slots together for something utterly unique.
Amazingly, the world of online slots is continuously growing and there’s no denying that even more mechanics will develop within the next few years. Sadly, most table games are quite conventional and must follow certain rules – whereas slots have the potential to change and adapt to suit the changing needs of the audience.
Power to the player
As previously mentioned, online slots have the beauty of control from players as they can decide when to start and end their games. Whereas, table games often have other players or a croupier to hold up the games, therefore, meaning that it’s harder for players to just leave the game.
The player also has the power to decide what sort of volatility level they want to play this and this ultimately means how predictable the online slot will be. For example, a slot with low volatility pays out smaller sums at regular intervals but high volatility pays out larger sums but at a greater risk. At the end of the day, it’s up to the player to decide what sort of volatility they want and this can affect which online slot they play.
Whether it’s volatility or RTP (return to player), players choose what suits them best and how they want their gameplay to go. A player has so many options to choose from when selecting an online slot that they can basically create their own experience.
Of course, online slots are completely random and no one can predict what their gameplay will be like fully. Certain factors such as volatility can inform the players of what the slot could play like and therefore lead them to make the choice that’s right for them.
Conclusion
One of the most disputed arguments in favour of table games boasts of the interaction and live aspect of the games. Live casino games have evolved within the past few years and there has been a rise in live casino slots meaning that players can experience the thrill of playing an online slot with a real-time host. Ultimately, this just emphasises how online slots are evolving constantly and just keep getting better.
There’s no telling what the future holds for online slots, which is exactly why they offer a lot more than table games. Within the past few years, online slots have exploded in terms of mechanics, features and design – so there’s no telling what they’ll be like in the near future. They’ll always be something fresh and new for players with online slots meaning that they’ll never get repetitive or dull.